nce of granitic
rocks, at sixteen or twenty miles higher up. The whole country was flat;
no hill was visible, but, towards the end of our day's journey, we
crossed a few slight undulations.

During the night of the 14th, southerly winds were followed by a gale
from the eastward, with scud and drizzling rain. The morning of the 15th
was cloudy with a little rain; wind southerly. Early in the night, a
strong east-wind with drizzling long rain set in, but cleared up at
midnight. The morning of the 16th was cloudy, with a southerly wind. Our
lat. was 21 degrees 39 minutes 58 seconds.

March 17.--Mr. Gilbert and Brown went forward in search of water,
supposing that they would find it at a convenient distance, but were
unsuccessful, and, as they had taken neither guns nor provisions, they
were obliged to return. Keeping, however, a little more to the left, on
their return, they came to two fine water-holes at the foot of some
ironstone ridges, where they passed the night, and reached the camp the
following day, having had nothing to eat for twenty-four hours. The camp
was then moved to these water-holes, about nine miles off, in a due west
course. Fine water-holes were passed at a short half-mile from our camp;
and, after crossing the northern anabranch of the river, we again found
water.

The detection of isolated water-holes in a wooded country, where there is
nothing visible to indicate its presence, is quite a matter of chance. We
have often unconsciously passed well-filled water-holes, at less than a
hundred yards distant, whilst we were suffering severely from thirst. Our
horses and bullocks never showed that instinctive faculty of detecting
water, so often mentioned by other travellers; and I remember instances,
in which the bullocks have remained the whole night, not fifty yards from
water-holes, without finding them; and, indeed, whenever we came to small
water-holes, we had to drive the cattle down to them, or they would have
strayed off to find water elsewhere. On several occasions I followed
their tracks, and observed they were influenced entirely by their sight
when in search of it; at times attracted by a distant patch of deeper
verdure, at others following down a hollow or a watercourse, but I do not
recollect a single instance where they found water for themselves. The
horses, however, were naturally more restless and impatient, and, when we
approached a creek or a watercourse after a long journey, would des